Film.Music.Media

Jeff Rona | Composer/Author: The Reel World (Third Edition)

Composer Jeff Rona sits down for a brand new Film.Music.Media conversation!
 
Jeff takes some time to talk about the newest edition of his book, The Reel World. Jeff’s book has been an incredible resource for composers entering this industry, and is packed with so much real-world knowledge and perspectives that help get any composer a more comfortable footing on the ever-shifting grounds of the entertainment industry.
 
Jeff talks about how he updates the book to reflect the current state of the industry including getting more perspectives from younger composers who have more recent insight to share along with the insight from veterans who entered the industry at different times including John Williams and James Newton Howard among others. Jeff talks about how things have changed and evolved, what has stayed the same, new technologies, and even the hot topic conversation around AI in music.
 
Jeff examines some of his recent work as well including how he works with an amazing team, how he got into video game scoring, and his recent solo album Lume.
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

David Fleming | Co-Composer: The Last Of Us

Composer David Fleming sits down for a brand new Film.Music.Media conversation!
 
Dave shares his journey to becoming a composer including getting his start working with composers like Atli Örvarsson and Hans Zimmer. Dave also talks about his work as an additional composer on certain projects like Hans Zimmer's Dune, and what it's like being part of a music team.
 
For this chat we take a look at Dave's general approach to several projects including South Of Heaven, Hillbilly Elegy, and The Unforgivable. The latter two were co-scored with Hans Zimmer. We also dive into Dave's recent score with Hans to the French Canadian miniseries, The Night Logan Woke Up.
 
Dave also talks about co-scoring The Last Of Us on HBO. Hear how he worked separately from the series' lead composer Gustavo Santaolalla to help flesh out certain scenes and to add tension and atmosphere to the overall structure of the series.
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas
 
**This interview was recorded at the end of March 2023 and certain mention of projects and their timing are not accurate at the time of posting.**

Max Aruj | Composer: The Tank

Composer Max Aruj sits down for a brand new Film.Music.Media conversation!
From getting his start working on Lorne Balfe's team to scoring hit thrillers like Crawl (co-scored with Steffen Thum) and his recent score to The Tank, Max has quickly stood out for his incredible versatility and unique voice as a musical storyteller.
For this chat we explore Max's background and path to composing, getting his foot in the door, working with Lorne Balfe, early lessons learned, branching out and scoring films on his own, finding his storytelling voice, and co-composing some projects with Steffen Thum.
For The Tank we look at what it takes to successfully create tension and score a creature feature, and why we as a society love the genre so much!
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Corey Wallace | Composer: Supercell

Composer Corey Wallace sits down for a brand new Film.Music.Media conversation!
 
Topics: Corey's path to becoming a composer, getting his first jobs in the industry, developing his sound as a composer, his approach to scoring Supercell and writing music that balances disaster action as well as character arcs, keeping that traditional orchestral writing style alive, achieving a big sound on a small budget film, and more!
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas
 
#coreywallace #composer #interview #podcast #soundtrack #soundtracks #behindthescenes #filmmaking #movies #television #supercell

Joel J Richard | Co-Composer: John Wick - Chapter 4

Composer Joel J Richard joins us for an in-depth look at his work co-scoring the entire John Wick series alongside Tyler Bates, and what went into developing the sound of John Wick and evolving it across four films.
 
Joel starts off talking about his unique path to composing including working as an assistant for John Powell. We talk about how he found his inspiration for composing and what were the steps that led to meeting Tyler Bates, which in turn led Tyler asking him to co-helm the first John Wick film.
 
We focus on the musical evolution of John Wick, and how he worked with director Chad Stahelski as the films grew in scope and the lore of the world expanded. Joel talks about finding the sound of the world, what style and approach worked best, and how the scores for each film led up to this final chapter. Chapter 4 opens up the scope of John Wick even bigger and builds upon its genre inspirations from Hong Kong cinema, John Woo, European neo-noir, Akira Kurosawa, and Sergio Leone. Joel talks about weaving those textures and nods, tackling huge action set pieces, and making sure the score never lost the feel that was established in the first film.
 
Joel is such a wonderful and versatile composer, and his work on the John Wick series ended up building its own unique sonic identity while still being able to acknowledge the genres that inspired the character and world.
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Alex Heffes | Composer: Mafia Mamma

Composer Alex Heffes has worked on over 70 feature films and TV projects collaborating with directors including Kevin Macdonald, Steven Frears, Catherine Hardwicke and Mira Nair. His ability to adapt and craft unique narratives and build sonic palettes has made him one of the most renowned composers working today.
 
For this chat we look at how Alex found his way to becoming a composer, and what his general approach to scoring is. Alex shares stories from various projects such as traveling around the world to record certain sounds and instruments to working closely with Tim Burton on the film adaptation of Sweeney Todd.
 
We also take a look at his recent score to Mafia Mama, which sees him reuniting with director Catherine Hardwicke for a fun and light crowd-pleasing comedy starring Toni Collette. Alex talks about working with Catherine again, and how he approached scoring an action comedy. We talk about finding the right tone, making sure the score doesn't overstep boundaries, referencing the mob genre musically and much more!
 
Alex's versatility as a composer and storyteller have brought us so many wonderful scores over the years and it was a real pleasure to peek into his world for this conversation.
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

James Allen Roberson | Composer: Heart Of A Champion

Composer James Allen Roberson takes some time to talk about his career and his new score to the heartwarming family film Heart Of A Champion.
 
We chat about James's path to becoming a composer, and how he started working as an assistant and additional composer for Rupert Gregson-Williams. James explains what he learned working for Rupert, and how it helped prep him for his own career.
 
We dive in and talk about his newest score to Heart Of A Champion, and how James approached the score to balance the tone and emotions of the narrative. We also talk about his score to the animated series, Spirit Riding Free and how he tackled an animated series across four seasons.
 
James's passion and versatility as a storyteller has made him one of the most prominent voices working today and it was a real pleasure to catch up with him!
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

EmmoLei Sankofa | Composer: Three Ways

EmmoLei Sankofa has been paving her own path and establishing her amazing sound as a storyteller through her scores for projects like Step Up: High Water, Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls, and her recent score to the feature Three Ways, which is now streaming on Hulu.
 
In this extensive chat we cover a wide array of topics covering not only EmmoLei's methods and approach to scoring, but also navigating the business, working with filmmakers, tackling different genres, adapting to change and so much more!
 
We also look at how EmmoLei is re-defining how a composer is part of the creative team, and why she loves to go the extra mile to collaborate beyond the score. She serves as Executive Producer on Three Ways as well, and we discuss how that happened.
 
EmmoLei also talks about her unique approach of using Morse code to come up with themes and melodies in her scores. Something that she's been utilizing since early on in her career, and one of the most interesting ways of crafting narrative structure.
 
EmmoLei's passion and versatility has made her a premiere voice in the industry, and she's doing so by staying away from the conventional career routes to discover how artists can truly make a living and still be fulfilled by their work in this industry.
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Tim Wynn | Co-Composer Marvel’s Midnight Suns

Composer Tim Wynn's versatility as a storyteller can be seen and heard in his scores across film, television and video games. His work on movies like Freaks and The Legend of La Llorona to series like Disney's MECH-X4 and Supernatural showcase his passion for variety and exploring as many genres as possible.
 
Tim returns as a guest to discuss his newest score to the hit video game Marvel's Midnight Suns, which he co-scored with Phill Boucher. We take a dive into how he approached scoring the game and exploring the world of Marvel through music. We talk how different genres of games require different types of scores, and how the process has evolved over the years.
 
We also chat about other topics like changes happening in the industry, his general approach, a little refresh on his background and path to composing, and much more!
 
A Film.Music.Media Production | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas
 
#timwynn #composer #interview #podcast #soundtrack #soundtracks #behindthescenes #filmmaking #movies #television #videogames #marvelsmidnightsuns #midnightsuns #marvel

Post Production All Stars | 3rd Annual F.M.M Symposium

The 3rd Annual Film.Music.Media Symposium concludes with “Post Production All Stars"!
 
Music is just one piece of the puzzle, hear from other professionals who work in post production alongside the composer and the score to see how music and sound is part of their workflows.
 
Featuring Forest Christenson (Additional Composer/Score Mixer, Hunters), Jemma Burns (Music Supervisor, Heartbreak High | Okja), Nathan Ruyle (Sound Designer, Joyland | The Voyeurs) and Yvette M. Amirian, ACE (Editor, The Integrity of Joseph Chambers)
 
An Impact 24 PR & Film.Music.Media Production | Presented By Kaya Savas